Four Hundred And Sixty-One / Side One Hundred And Sixty-Two, Ortlinde, Valkyrie of Tyr

Four Hundred And Sixty-One / Side One Hundred And Sixty-Two, Ortlinde, Valkyrie of Tyr

“Ortlinde, little sister, sister!” A cheerful voice interrupted Ortlinde from her reverie. Instinctively, she ran a hand through her long, flaming red hair, before looking at the speaker, Siegrune, whose eyes were sparkling with impish mischief.

“Sister, you looked lost in thought. But don’t worry, times might be hard, but there’s always still alcohol and good food. If the tables run dry in the Halls of Valhalla, then we truly have reached the end.” With her orange eyes and brilliant aqua hair, Siegrune was as energetic as she looked. No, that does not matter now. Not at all.

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“If Brunnhilde or Gerhilde were here, they would chastise you for your attitude.” Ortlinde managed, only for Siegrune to look at her with a trace of pity.

“Of course they would, but if we can’t joke about in times like these, when can we?”

“That’s right.” Another voice agreed, and she turned to see Rossweisse, her petite frame yet ample chest balanced with her light pink hair and white eyes making her seem almost childlike, yet, with book in hand, she was studying strategy, more diligent than any of the other sisters, even if she was less serious than Brunnhilde. “It’s not all bad. Things are always darkest before the dawn, and we won again, didn’t we?”

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“Yes, but...” Ortlinde always found it hard to put her feelings into words. After all, the nine of them were the youngest of the Valkyries, and so felt they had a lot to prove, especially now, since times were changing so much. Change is a frightening thing, even for us youngest. We know little that is different, but seeing the sorrow on the faces of the elders, sensing their uncertainty that they try to keep hidden from us... “...it isn’t that.”

“Oh, I know what it is, Rose.” Siegrune used a familiar nickname for the other Valkyrie. “She’s worried about the new delivery. I mean...”

“No, it is not that I worry...” Ortlinde interjected. “It is just... we should be able to do more. Merely delivering a chance of salvation sits poorly with me.”

“Aye, I get you.” Siegrune nodded. “But what can we do? The Allfather and our parents have their reasons. Besides, if we do more, then it’ll just lead to the other Pantheons going all out as well, right Rose?”

The petite Valkyrie agreed. “Yes, while I agree it is unfairly stacked against us, in favour of the Ninth Heaven, at least this way we aren’t spending our strength fighting each other when we have a common problem.” Closing her book, she steepled her fingers under her chin and observed Ortlinde, which made her want to look away, but she met her sister’s gaze defiantly. “Perhaps you regret persuading us to take the Fruit of the World Tree, rather than handing it over to the Allfather? If so, you persuaded me, and I still agree with your impassioned pleas and worthy logic, so set that regret aside. The Fruit would have been useful to the Allfather, but it would be a known quantity. I agreed there was a need for boldness, if we were to prove ourselves of use to our older sisters and our parents. Even eldest Gerhilde and wisest, most straightlaced Brunnhilde were persuaded. The fact that it may not bear fruit...” she coughed, flushing a little, embarrassed by her inadvertent pun. “...does not invalidate the merits of the gamble. For you are surely right, sister. If things continue as they are, matters will surely continue to decline. Repeating the same acts again and again, expecting better results, is simply abrogation of logic.”

“I do not see why we have to quarrel, when worlds fall. Surely, with a common enemy...” Ortlinde tried to protest, only for Siegrune to slap her shoulder sympathetically.

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“Come on, we may be young, but we’ve been around a long time, littlest sister. Arguments are always settled by power. It’s always been that way, before we were even born, and always will be, when we are long gone. Nobody wants to compromise if they don’t have to. You’re too soft-hearted. It’s why we agreed with you, in part. Who doesn’t want their youngest sister to be happy?”

Ortlinde sighed, but wasn’t entirely miserable. “I know. I know. But it seems so ... backwards. Perhaps the Allfather, our parents, they see things we do not, I would hardly dare to assume I see as far as the giants who have nurtured the World Tree for a near eternity. But...”

“It sounds to me like you do assume, Ortlinde.” Rossweisse covered her gentle smile with one hand, as prim as ever. “But then, I understand. I like to study strategy as well, to improve myself. But alas, with the One True Throne uncooperative, and many Pantheons even now refusing to come together, all we can do is what we do. And... at least you know yours still live, no? From the Seeds?” Rossweisse puffed out her chest proudly. “Mine too. And only Schwertliete and Helmwige can claim a survivor. Six from eighteen, but it is fitting two are yours.”

“Maybe so, but... those twelve were killed by us.” Ortlinde said, only for Rossweisse to disagree.

“No, those were killed by mischance. Just as we gave the Divine Favours to a fresh world recently, and many, if not all will perish. At least for the survivors, we know. But...” she exchanged a glance with the teasing Siegrune, who finished for her.

“...even if they all die, it was meant to be. We gave them a chance. Seeds grow best in virgin soil, and most plants wither and die due to poor weather, lack of sun, pests or vandalism. Not every sapling can become a World Tree. That’s why many seeds are sown. Do not weep for the seeds that perish, sister, but rejoice at the bravery of those that took a chance without taking the easy way... huh?”

“She has stopped listening.” Rossweisse said, halting Siegrune’s flow. “That isn’t like our serious, diligent youngest sister, but... see? Her eye is glowing.”

“Oh, you think it’s her second one, having reached a level to unlock some of the power that lies within the Seeds? If so, she’s fortunate indeed. Only her first and one of yours has...”

Ortlinde could hear their voices, but they faded away and she found her consciousness being drawn along the threads that connected her to the bearer of the Seeds she had persuaded her sisters to withhold. It was destiny one of the rare Fruits of the great Tree fell into our hands. I knew then I had to take a chance, but...

Her eyes went wide with surprise. “You? Again? No... not quite. You come to me strangely.” She looked at the man in front of her, who seemed surprised and highly pressured by something, his eyes unfocussed. But on hearing her words, he snapped back to focus, though the effort beaded sweat on his brow.

“Exposition-san? No... Ortlinde. Sorry. The name has stuck with me.” The man said, though he sounded a little unsure, and she had a realisation. “Of course. You would remember little, separating your spiritual body is a strain enough for a weak mortal. The Silver Cord would be stressed severely, which is why...” Her golden eyes went wide as she looked at where the Cord would be, and she felt a surge of despair.

“It broke? No, it was always a risk, which is why the Favours we passed to you were tied up in the Seeds, but... you reached me before, and...” Her heart cracked, and her worries that her sisters had identified within her surged anew, making her regret her choices. You were a brave one. Starting from nothing, you gained a measure of strength. But strength alone is not enough, you need Fortune and Fate on your side as well...

“Hey, calm down.” The man, Akio, said, seeing her distressed expression and the direction of her gaze, though he closed his legs coyly. “If you’re worried I can’t survive up here, then...” he stifled a groan. “Ugh, it’s rough, but not due to that. Right now I don’t have a Cord, as I’m purely using a spiritual body. But I’m not dead. Far from it.”

“I... see.” Ortlinde’s spiritual body wasn’t truly descending, nor was his ascending, but merely using the connection that acted on higher principles Ortlinde wasn’t truly qualified to understand. Nor do we fully understand the Favours we pass on, so perhaps what we did was imperfect, though between the nine of us, and what we asked... I believe we did acceptably well. Even so, they had theorised that it would put great pressure on the Silver Cord of those they chose, so there were risks, as she had just expressed.

Eyeing Akio closely, she was surprised to see he was indeed different. “Wait, yes, you seem more than mortal now. No, that is hardly important.” She glanced at the golden thread connecting their wrists. “I see. I should congratulate you. But you seem to be suffering. Reaching for power beyond your means is...” she was about to say reckless, reminding him of his original caution, which she found a little comical, but not unwise, only for him to surprise her.

“...necessary. I can’t protect anything without power.” He grinned, and while it was reminiscent of some of the smiles she remembered during her brief moments with him, it was more confident, and deeply knowing. “I guess I won’t remember this again. I forgot you before, sorry. Only recalling scattered fragments. Oh God, that damn Tree...”

“I see. You are resonating with the Seeds. As I had believed you would.” Ortlinde felt satisfaction, her heart feeling lighter, as at least one of her two charges was doing well. And the other yet lives, so there is hope. “Though I feel I must apologise. To reach this place you must have discovered it. That I held you back. Though not without good reason, bitter though it might be.”

“Yeah. The slower, better way. I get it though.” Akio laughed, though his face was pained. “It’s like Cultivation, in a way. You build the most strength by starting from the foundation, and shortcuts always cost you in the end.”

“But even so, to face those who had full access to their Favour... I did not tell you everything. Yes, I hoped that you would rise to the challenge, that your caution would not hold you back too much, so that one with power already would hew you down as a mere sapling, but... I still feel I did you wrong.”

“Even though it wasn’t. Sure, I could have used more knowledge, but... telling me I’d face bastards like Kondou Kazuo before I had power on par with his might have broken me. And compared to other Chosen I’ve talked to, you were positively eager to share and prepare me. So don’t feel bad. No...” he amended with a wry smile. “Still feel bad a bit. So answer me a question.”

“I am still limited in what I can say, else I would have said more. Surely you understand?” she shot back.

“I get that, but the chances of me remembering anything anyway are slim. And I doubt anyone would know. We’re connected, right? And I have been told and even seen that higher beings have ways of finding out secrets, but would they think of this?”

“It depends on the question.” Ortlinde said hesitantly, wishing to make some amends, and soothe her guilt, as the Candidates her sisters selected died one by one, and on the new world, the chances of their choices were minimal. I don’t do it to be cruel. By the Allfather, by Tyr, I do it to strengthen us all, to stand against evil and chaos. To show there is another way. To save those who could be our allies.

She nodded Shiro’s head. “I can. Do you not need it?”

“Not this. The other parts... maybe. But I’ll be needing that third Possession at the end. Sorry Shiro, but I can’t do this alone, and only have one shot. I need you to change my buffs a number of times too as I prepare.”

“I don’t know if I’ll be strong enough... I’m at my limit, Aki.” She said apologetically, but I stroked her hair reassuringly.

“For this adherence, I’m sure Tan can support you.” I bargained, and Tan laughed.

“Now you are simply taking advantage of me. But... my curiosity is rather piqued. Very well. What do you need?”

“First, my Eye again. And I know that I’m not able to control the mystery third element of a Favour, or do much with it, but I also know that I don’t need to do much. Not for this.” I’m not trying to recreate a Favour. I’m trying to take what it does, and integrate it with me and Shiro, replicating what it does, but fuelling it from our own aether, adherence and strength. Essentially, isn’t that just what something like Foehn is? A flame that had its own adherence, even if I never really noticed it until now.

“You better not let me down, Aki.” she warned, groaning as Tan flooded her Chakra network with aether. My Eye broke the bottleneck again, and at my gesture, Shiro switched the buff to Adherence Manipulation. I put the things I had seen into a Split Thought, probed with Chirurgery, and Shiro switched the buff once more, giving me further insight. This continued for what seemed an eternity, but was probably only ten changes. Even so, Shiro was dripping with sweat, and so was I, and even with Tan’s reserves fuelling her, Shiro was white as her name.

“This is... hell. You bastard, Aki. One date isn’t enough!” she cried out, wrung dry. “At least tell me it’s working.”

“I’d say so...”

Your Skill, Adherence Manipulation has increased from Rank 4 to Rank 5. Your ability to separate mixed Adherence has significantly increased, and your overall efficiency with untangling and purifying Adherence has grown substantially. Adherence which aligns with you will be affected more strongly, depending on your League.

With that second Rank up in such a short time, the brutal crash course in manipulating the adherence within the Favour just enough to find out what I wanted to know without damaging Jarovid’s Favour further driving my skills to the maximum, I needed one additional push. “Shiro, Adherence Manipulation again. Then it should just be Chirurgery, and we’re good for the try!”

“I hate you right now.” she groaned, but I felt her affection as she blessed me, and as the bottleneck was breached, using the mental map I had constructed with my Eye and the earlier probing, I now had enough insight to determine more about the adherence itself. I have so many examples. There’s the Favour I hold, Tsukuyomi’s, Shiro holds Anesidora’s, I’m carrying several in a loose state, and the way they need adherence to keep existent without being embedded in a host is telling, and vital. It gives me a clue to what the third mystery element deals with, if nothing else. Lastly, when Tan uses Divine Possession, the last piece...

“The adherence here... it’s the strengthening aspect physically. Whereas there’s a second thread that seems the same, but isn’t. The Favour’s been broken, already pulled at by Akoman, so...” The images I had scorched into the ground as I fainted before showed the difference, and it was a weakness I could exploit. Not to fix, but to break. Yet not to allow it to scatter, only giving me raw power. I want what it has...

I made my preparations, and Tan descended a final time. She could barely project a fraction of her strength into the weakened and tormented Shiro, but I didn’t need her for that, other than providing her unique adherence to smooth my path. Miracle stacked on miracle, huh? What else would you call Shiro, Tan and even Ortlinde, all giving me the hints I need? Our connections, our bonds, they help us. Tan was surrounded by an incandescent nimbus of flames, and with the bottleneck breached, I could clearly feel not just the surface-level interpretation, of fire, thirst, hunger and conquest, but also of integration, of absorption.

“The way you devour Favours with your Flames Of Thirst And Famine... it’s not dissimilar to what I want here. So... your adherence, combined with my Chirurgery...” I was burned by Tan’s flames, for the adherence was not meant for me, but her will supported me, and it guided me, relieving a great deal of the burden. “...it can do this. Release Shiro, Tan, final buff, do or die time!”

The flames around Tan died down, Shiro’s hair flashing to silver, and as she stumbled to her knees, she poured out her last strength. My Chirurgery returned to Rank 10, the strongest skill I possessed. “Here we go! Break apart, but with the knife, not the hammer!” All my Split Thoughts, all my focus, all my drive, was frozen in one moment. Ether shattered, breaking by my rough handling, but ether I could supplement. Then adherence split, some lost, my skills still far too crude for handling the work of a God, though a stray thought crossed my mind. Even if a God made this, that doesn’t mean someone like me can’t touch it. A master Katana-smith might create a true work of art, but an average craftsman can disassemble it. It’s always easier to break than to build. But even the parts have some use, even if the whole is imperfect, losing the godliness...

“Is... Tan, is it working?” Shiro was asking, but I paid her no mind, nor the doubtful reply from Tan. I could feel it slipping, and so I threw in the fragments of Jarovid’s Favour to try and stabilise it, but it still wasn’t enough. I’ve largely split the adherence and purified it as much as I can, but... without the core, it was just adherence, which would give me some experience, and perhaps Rank up a skill or two, but that wasn’t what I wanted. If that was enough, why go to all this effort? But I have one last trump card.

I had also understood Morana’s adherence, and I had the separated remnants which Akoman had taken. It was a stabilising factor, so perhaps if I blended it in, just a little...

Your skill, Aetheric Chirurgeon has increased from Rank 10 to Rank 11 and has shattered the fourth horizon, reaching the fifth vista beyond that of ordinary comprehension. Your understanding of Ether, Adherence and ???????? has significantly increased, and you can integrate these more easily into Material and Spiritual bodies, and slightly mitigate issues of compatibility, though this should be used with caution. [Class: Legendary] [Type: Law]

Wait, it can do that? I’m not really Rank ten, it’s Shiro’s buffs, but... Suddenly the task which was near impossible was merely fiendishly difficult, but the first half was possible. I had to ignore amber letters as they flared, for I needed every drop of concentration I could spare...

You have gained a Skill, Adherence Crafting...

You have gained a Skill, Crude ???????? Crafting...

You have gained a Skill, Crude ???????? Manipulation...

You have gained a Class. You are now a Master Of Many Crafts.

You have gained a Class. You are now a Shaper Of Flesh And Spirit.

You have gained a Class. You are now a Prodigy Of The Lower Worlds.

Shit... so many. Yes, that’s frigging awesome, but get out of my head! Sweat was pouring from me as I trembled. Things being easier merely meant within the realm of the possible, and as I pulled apart the mysterious third substance I could barely perceive now as an indeterminate shadow, the adherence of Jarovid I wanted, stabilised by Morana’s adherence, poured into me. It was running rampant, but for some reason, I had an instinctive, if faint idea of where I needed it to go. Performing Chirurgery on myself was agonising and my blood boiled, spurting from me in a crimson and silver tide, before bubbling through the pores of my skin. Shiro was crying out, but I had no time for the pain to bother me.

The other half is escaping. Sorry Shiro, but...

Your skill, Body Enhancement Rank 5 has evolved to Boiling Blood Rank 1...

“This is going to hurt like hell. And it might not even work...” I rasped, as the adherence fully anchored within me.

You have gained a skill, Boiling Blood Resonance Link Rank 1...

“I see.” Shiro was frightened by my hideous appearance, and she swallowed, but her eyes were trusting. “Just do what needs doing.” She gritted her teeth, and one eye flared red.

“You are... quite the madman. I see now why I was beaten by you, but that was simply because I was not serious. Now I am. Deadly serious. But... a helping hand. I may not have your talents, which make me wonder if you have instead been blessed by Bhaiṣajyaguru, not Tyr.” She smirked, twisting Shiro’s scared face into a smile. “He may not have been the Buddha that scorned me, but I would certainly enjoy seeing you take his arrogance down a notch or ten.”

Tan’s adherence surged around us both, a hot, feverish wave, yet it was somehow comforting. The escaping adherence and mysterious substance was drawn towards Tan, yet she did not consume it, instead allowing me to guide it into Shiro’s body. Even so, her screams were weighing on my conscience, but her hand grasped mine, squeezing, and her dark eye was still looking steadfastly into mine, willing me to continue, laughing scornfully against the pain, her suffering a mark of pride.

As I worked, my Eye could see that Shiro had developed a new skill, her own blood seething, and it drew adherence from Anesidora’s blessing, as well as Tan’s own adherence, becoming something new and oddly powerful. But before I could check any of the details, the blood dripping from my Eye was becoming overwhelmingly painful, so bitterly exhausted, I collapsed, Shiro beside me. As my consciousness sunk into darkness, I felt arms tight around me, and heard some quiet words, and a soft ruffling of my hair.

“Idiot. When you said... that hurt... you were lying. That was beyond mere pain. But... it hurt you worse than me, I know. So rest now, Shiro is here. You did good, Aki. A lot of good things here. So for now... just sleep, and let the world take care of itself for a while...”

That sounds great. It’s been... a tough day. But... a good one in a lot of ways. A good... one...